Jacques Leveugle allegedly kept a diary of the abuse which also spanned several countries, prompting police to appeal for more victims to come forward.
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Jacques Leveugle, 79, who is in custody in south-east France, was arrested after his nephew found a USB that allegedly detailed his "sexual relations" with minors aged 13 to 17, the Grenoble prosecutor, Etienne Manteaux, told a news conference.
In an unusual move, authorities are naming the suspect because out of the 89 assaults, Manteaux said that only around 40 victims had been identified.
"If victims wish to come forward, now is the time," he added.
Police allege the crimes took place between 1967 and 2022.
Throughout much of his life, Leveugle worked as an informal teacher or assistant at holiday camps, the prosecutor said.
A timeline released of Leveugle's whereabouts dating back to the 1960s shows his appearance throughout the decades.
Police allege that he could have carried out assaults not only in France, but also Germany, Switzerland, Morocco, Niger, Algeria, the Philippines, India, Colombia, and the French overseas territory of New Caledonia.
"He travelled to these different countries and in each of these places where he settled to provide tutoring and teach, he would meet young people and have sexual relations with them," Manteaux told the news conference on Tuesday.
Leveugle was arrested in 2024 after visiting his brother in the Isère department around Grenoble, a city in south-eastern France. At the time, Leveugle was living in Morocco.
His brother's son - who had suspicions about his uncle - took advantage of his absence one day in October 2023 to examine a USB drive that belonged to Leveugle. It allegedly contained "15 tomes of very dense material" - photographs and written accounts of his "sexual relations" with minors, Manteaux said.
"The victims we have spoken to tell us that he spent a lot of time
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